Hardeep may have fired at Ponty’s legs

Reconstructing the sequence of events based on the post-mortem report of the two slain Chadha brothers, Delhi Police on Wednesday said that Ponty Chadha may have been shot at by his younger brother Hardeep in the leg first. Police believe that Hardeep did not intend to kill his brother and, therefore, aimed at his leg and not the body.

“It seems Ponty Chadha pushed or kicked his younger brother when he barged into the Chattarpur farmhouse. The scuffle may have turned worse and in retaliation, Hardeep may have fired. But he did not aim at his body and fired at his leg. He may have fired further once the fight got bitter,” said a police officer.

Police said Ponty received two bullet injuries in his thighs and one below the knee. Other bullet injuries on Ponty’s body were located in the abdomen and chest,” a senior police officer said. Police said they have recreated the sequence of events twice, along with forensic experts, and have gathered that the bullets were fired from a close range as well as from a certain distance.

At 4pm on Wednesday, forensic experts at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) handed over the post-mortem findings of the Chadha brothers to the Delhi Police. The post-mortem examination of both the brothers was performed simultaneously on Sunday but Ponty’s autopsy had to be done in two phases as the doctors had failed to extract three out of four bullets embedded inside in his body initially.

The post-mortem report has finally put an end to the speculation regarding the number of bullets the two brothers faced. “While Ponty had seven bullet injuries, Hardeep was shot twice and both the bullets pierced through the body, out of which one had ruptured his left lung, suggesting he was shot from a close range,” said a doctor. Both the brothers died of excessive bleeding due to organ damage. Doctors also said both the brothers had been shot from the front.

“We have collected all the evidence from their bodies and preserved them, including their clothes that would help in examining the bullet residue,” he added.

The post mortem report was supposed to be submitted on Tuesday, but the police requested the AIIMS forensic experts for a secondary crime scene visit on Tuesday to establish the sequence of events before preparing the final report.

“Post-mortem report is just the first step and we don’t want to jump to any conclusions. The ballistic report is awaited and we will match both to finalise the sequence of events,” he added.